To track the fish, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) units have been installed at several locations above and below Wawaka Lake dam near the hamlet of Halcottsville, N.Y. The readers will also be installed at the mouths of larger tributaries near the dam.

Tags are implanted into the trout using a minor surgical procedure. The tags communicate with the RFID units using radio waves. During the study 1,400 stocked and wild brown, brook and rainbow trout will be tracked for 2-years.

Tracking trout will provide insight to fish movement and migration patterns, providing insight into how stocked, naturalized and wild trout use the river, including how they may seek out cooler water during certain times of the year.

“By tracking trout we can better understand if thermal refugia are being used during time of thermal stress and how the Wawaka Lake dam may be impacting the trout fishery,” explained Steve Swenson, senior ecologist at the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. “The information gathered from the study will help NYS DEC understand how best to manage the cold-water fishery.”

The results will also be used to guide TU’s restoration efforts in the watershed.